Conservative activists dismantle Roh's memorial altar

SEOUL, June 24 (Yonhap) -- Two conservative groups Wednesday removed a memorial
altar for the late President Roh Moo-hyun set up by his supporters in the heart
of Seoul, saying that the police have neglected their duty by leaving the
"illegal" facility sitting there for over a month.

Officials at the National Action Campaign for Freedom and Democracy in Korea
(NACFDK) and the Korea Agent Orange Veterans Association (KAOVA) said that they
removed the makeshift altar for Roh in an early morning raid that began at 5:40
a.m.
The altar had been placed outside the Deoksu Palace across from the Seoul City
Hall by supporters of the late president.
Minor physical clashes were reported between the two sides but no one was
injured, as most of the late Roh's liberal supporters guarding the altar were
asleep at the time of the raid, according to eyewitnesses and police.
The altar served as a key geographical rallying point for candlelight vigils held
in Seoul by supporters of the late president, who took his own life in late May
amid an intensifying corruption probe into him and his family.
Roh's supporters, mostly liberals, have claimed the prosecutors' investigation
was politically motivated by the conservative administration of President Lee
Myung-bak.
"Some 50 people from the two groups removed the altar at around 5:40 a.m. We are
currently in possession of the portrait of the former president at a separate
place and will deliver it to the police later in the day," Suh Jeong-gab, a
director at NACFDK, told Yonhap News Agency in a phone interview.
The private altar had not been approved by the authorities, but police have not
removed it for fear of a possible political backlash.
While eyewitnesses said that riot police standing guard nearby didn't attempt to
deter the conservative attackers, the authorities said they plan to identify
those who carried out the removal and book them for investigation.
"We have not done anything wrong by removing an illegal facility. It is rather
the police that have neglected their duty," said Suh.
odissy@yna.co.kr
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